Process of making grille work



Jun 24, 192.0.

PROCESS OF MAKING GRILLE WORK Filed May 23. 1928 1,2 D. Kay,

'D. KAY 1,768,362

Patented June 24, 1930 -Ati3 LLOYD KAY, OF LOSALNGELES', CAIiIFORNIA,-ASSIG1IOB TO KAY-BEUNNEB STEEL PBODUCTSINGL, OF'LOS' ANGELES; CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATION OF DELAVJARE rnoonssor xvi-Amara GRILLE wonK Application. filed May 23, 1928.. Serial No. 279,910;

This invention relates to ornamental grille work which is used largely in the construction of ornamental gates, f cages in banks, and ornamental iron work such as usedin building construction. This grille work is very popular but has heretofore" been generally constructed entirely by hand and is- 2 hereinafter, all'cof which-contribute to pro,-

duce an efficient process of making grille work. The invention consists also in the grille work resulting from the process.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is described in the following specification, while the broad scope 'of the invention is pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing: I v Figural is a ver'tical'sect'ion through a balustrade having grille work] ends embodying my invention. 4 I

Figure 2 is a detail showing a portion of the end of the balustrade broken away. e In practicing the invention,- I provide a frame 1 which is preferably constructed of wrought iron or steel. This frame may have. any shape adaptingit to the particularpurposefor which the grille work is to" be employed- In the, present instance this frame would constitute the framework of a ba-lustrade: and is constructed with vertical frame members 2 which are secured against the face of a wall 3. The frame'includes also two horizontal foot bars 4 which ex- 43 tend longitudinally of the balustrade and may include hand rails 5 and'6 which extend horizontally at the ends of the construction and connect at their outer ends to longitudinal rails 7 and 8. The rails 7. and

8 may be supported on ornamental corner connected by an inclinedibar.

post'sor stanchions 9. If desired'th'e' stanchions may be provided with ornamental caps such as the cap 10. I

After constructing th" frame by welding these parts together or otherwise connecting f them,v I employ ornamental castings such as the castmgs l1 and'12. In the present in stance the latter casting is of suitable form and dimensions toenable it to be set between thehorizontal rails 5 and 6 so that the casting touches these rails at contact points 13, and at one end touchesthe vertical frame member 2at a contact point 14.. The outer end of the casting touches the corner post 9 at a contact point 15; may be formed of'two ornamental scrolls It may have any desired shape.

The space between the foot bars 4and the rail 6 is. filled by an ornamental casting 1-1 which is set in place, and this casting 11 is of sufficient dimension and p'roper'fo'rm to touch the rails 4and 6,at the contact points 16. It also preferably touches the frame member 2 at a-plurality of points such as points 17. At its outer portion the ornamental casting 11 touches thestanchion 9 at a plurality of points 18.

I If desired under the balustrade an ornamental bracket casting19 may be provided P which touches the under sides of the rails 4 at several points 20 and this bracket also touches the frame member 2 at the point 21.

After setting the castings in contact with the frame, I then weld all the points of i I contact to produce welded joints such as This casting indicated by the dotted lines 22 at these points- In order to facilitate the'making ofthese welded joints; I prefer to employ wrought iron or steel-having a known:- carbon content. The; frame members" arevpreferably made, of rolled iron or' steel and preferably have a carbon content of about one-tenth of one percent. The castings should. have a carbon content conforming substantially to this butthe carbon content the castings'n'iay' run as high as about twenty-five-hundredtha of one percent. The carbon content in the cracked by the blows.

frame may run as high as about fifteen-hundredths of one percent.

As is well known, castings are relatively hard and brittle. Castings of irregular form such as illustrated and such as are used in ornamental iron work may vary considerably in their dimensions and hence in setting the castings inthe frame it may be necessary to force the castings somewhat out of their natural form. This may set up dangerous strains in the castings. In order to soften the castings and prepare them for receiving hammer blows, I anneal the structure after the joints have all been Welded. This annealing may be made through a Wide range of temperature. Any temperature from about 650 F. to 1650 F. will be found satisfactory. After annealing the structure, I hammer the castings and the frame with a small hammer. These blows assist in eliminating the internal stresses in the castings, and the softened condition of the castings due to the annealing prevents any possibility of their being The softened surface of thecastings enables the hammer to indent the surface of the castings as indicated in the detail (Figure 2).

In this ,way ornamental iron work can be produced at a relatively low cost. The cast ings can be very inexpensively produced and may have a high degree of ornamentation.

In this Way very pleasing ornamental iron work can be produced which closely resembles ordinary grille work constructed entirely of wrought iron beaten and bent into the desired shape. It will be evident that in welding the contact points, it is only necessary to weld a sufficient number of them to securely hold the cast portions in place.

It is understoodthat the embodiment of the invention described herein is only one of the many embodiments this invention may take, and I do not wish to be limited in the practice of the invention, nor in the claims, to the particular embodiment set forth.

What I claim is: l. A process of constructing grille-work which consists in constructing a frame of Wrought iron or steel, setting castings of ornamental form in contact with the frame, welding the castings to the frame at the points of contact, and annealing the structure' thereafter.

2. A process of making grille-Work which consists in constructing a frame of wrought iron or steel, setting ornamental castings in the frame having contact points touching the frame, Welding, the castings to the frame such contact points, annealing the structure thereafter to soften the material of the castconsists in constructing a frame of wrought iron or steel having a known carbon content, setting ornamental castings in the frame having known carbon content conforming to the carbon content of the material of the frame and so that the castings touch the frame at contact points, welding the castings to the frame at such contact points, and annealing the structure thereafter to soften the material of the castings.

4. A process of making grille-work which consists in constructing a frame of wrought iron or steel having a carbon content of approximately one-tenth of one per cent, setting ornamental castings in the frame having a carbon content of approximately twotenths of one per cent, and so that the castings touch the frame at contact points, welding the castings to the frame at such contact points, annealing the structure thereafter to softenthe material of the castings, and then hammering the castings to reduce their in ternal stresses.

5. A process of making grille-work which consists in constructing a frame of wrought iron or steel having a carbon content of approximately one-tenth of one per cent, settingornamental castings in the frame having a carbon content of approximately twotenths of one per cent, and so that the castings touch the frame at contact points, welding the castings to the frame at such contact points, annealing the structure thereafter to soften the material of the castings, hammering the surface of the frame to ornament the same, and then hammering the surface of the castings to reduce their internal stresses and to increase their ornamental appearance.

6. A process of making grille-work which consists in constructing a frame of wrought iron or steel having a carbon content of approximately onetenth of one per cent, setting castings in the frame having a carbon content of approximately two-tenths of one per cent, andso that the castings touch the frame at contact points, Welding the castings to the frame at such contact points, annealing the structure thereafter to soften the material of the castings, and hammering the surface of the castings to reduce their internal stresses and enhance their ornamental appearance, and also hammering the surface of the frame.

Signed at Los Angeles, California, this 3rd day of May, 1928. LLOYD'D. KAY.

ings, and then hammering the castings to reduce their internal stresses 3. A process of making grille-work which 

